GVDelhi2006 Frequently Asked Questions
'Q: What is Global Voices?' Global Voices Online serves as the hub for an international community of bloggers who want to communicate with the broader world. Its main components are a blog, wiki, and aggregator of international blogs. For more detailed information see our about page. 'Q: Who runs Global Voices?' Global Voices Online lives on a server run by the Berkman Center for Internet & Society, which is a research think-tank focusing on the future of the internet and its impact on all aspects of human society. We’re based at Harvard University’s Law School. It was started by two of the Berkman Center’s research fellows, technologist and Africa expert Ethan Zuckerman and former CNN journalist and Asia expert, Rebecca MacKinnon. Increasingly, Global Voices is driven by bloggers around the world. For a list of our editorial team of global bloggers, please see our About Page. Our full list of contributors can be found in the right hand column of our front page. 'Q: Where did the idea for this project come from?' The idea came out of a one-day international blogging conference held at Harvard in December 2004. Many attendees – bloggers from around the world – felt that there needed to be a vehicle like Global Voices to help bloggers from different countries find each other and engage in a global conversation. For more, see our About page. You can also read this account of the GV conference, or listen to this podcast. 'Q: I have an ibook I am bringing with me, do I need a step down or will an adapter do?' You will most probably need to get an adapter for your electronic devices since India uses the 230 voltage and a frequency of 50 Hertz. It's pretty easy to get "all-in-one" adapters which you can use to plug your device's power chord into before plugging into the power supply. Buy it in India as they'll cost Rs 10 at any neighbourhood electrical shop. That's about $0.23. The following links contain images of the sockets and plugs used in India: M Plug | D Plug | CEE 7-17 Plug | Euro Plug 'Q: How does money work in India? In other words, what should we expect in terms of ATM access/ATM compatibility with US/UK/International/National credit cards/checks/travelers' checks, etc.' I was able to withdraw money using international cards at most ATMs in Bangalore and Chennai and there are lots of them. It should be the same in Delhi too. Most mid-range to higher-end restaurants and shops will accept cards. ATMs are widely available in Delhi and the big towns and cities. Most will accept any VISA and MASTERCARD compatible ATM cards. Just make sure you have some cash in hand to pay for petty expenses like tips and for some colourful 'street' shopping. The stores and most restaurants will accept credit cards. ATMs bearing Visa/Mastercard logos -- which is pretty much all of them -- will accept your cards. I've used a US check card in India before. Personal Checks can take up to a month to process. Avoid them. Traveller's Checks will be accepted at larger hotels and banks. Cards work best for convenience. A lot of ATMs of Banks like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, UTI Bank, Corporation Bank, etc. accept VISA, MasterCard & Plus Network cards, so withdrawing money wouldn't be a problem. Whatever you withdraw, you'll get the money in local currency, ie. INR. For exchange rate policy & charges on international withdrawals, check with your bank/card company. 'Q: Are there any ATMs near the hotel and conference venue?' The largest number of ATMs in India are operated by the state-owned State bank of India (SBI). Following are some SBI ATMs in Delhi that are near the hotel venue or the summit venue or in central Delhi: * 21 North Block, Central Secretariat, New Delhi, Delhi - 110001 * 22 Parayavaran Bhavan C.G.O., CGO Complex, New Delhi, Delhi * 23 IOC-19th Hole Golf Club, Lodi Estate, New Delhi, Delhi - 110003 * 24 Cottage Emporium-Janapath, Chandralok Building, New Delhi, Delhi * 50 East Park Road, Karol Bagh, East Park Road, New Delhi, Delhi - 249175 'Q: Where may I obtain a copy of the Visa application form?' Just download an India visa application form for your local High Commission from here, fill it in and take a printout. 'Q: Regarding the Visa application, we were instructed to get a Tourist Visa and not mention anything about the summit because of the additional paperwork required. However, since the ticket was purchased by Harvard/sponsoring insititution, would that cause any difficulties? Even though it is not prominently labeled as not purchased by me?' I've traveled to India several times for conferences and have always used a tourist visa; it's never been a problem, even when the organizers purchased the ticket. Speaking of visas, if you've ever purchased an Indian visa before, you may want to check the expiry date before getting a new one. If you purchased a multi-year visa or have been there recently, it may still be valid. (Andy Carvin went ahead and got a 10-year visa before my last visit, so he's good to go until 2015) Kamla Bhatt mentioned that if you are applying for an Indian visa the first time around you might want to get a 6 month or 1 year visa. If you want a 10 year visa the visa consul will want to know why etc. They need to see that you travel to India frequently before they stamp that 10-year visa stamp. Also, make sure you have the right photo size and money. Sometimes they might not accept personal checks (each Indian consulate is a bit different), but might take cash. Also if you want to travel to certain parts of India (for travel) do check and see if there are special permits required. These areas are in the north-east and parts of Kashmir. These rules change every now and then so you might want to get the correct information. 'Q: What kind of vaccines or shots do i need to get? Are they any diseases to be aware of?' Please do get your shots right now. There are a bunch of shots you need to get. Do read up about Chickengunya a kind of viral fever that is its rounds in India, the symptoms for it are similar to malaria and I don't mean to create fear, but create awareness. The reason I share this is I have had family members who got this viral fever and the hospital at New York University could not diagnose it. We called India and got it diagnosed There's also a dengue fever outbreak in Delhi right now. There is no preventative medicine to block dengue, so it's best to avoid getting bitten by mosquitoes. You can buy bug repellant with DEET, and spray your clothes with Permethrin before you pack; it will stay on your clothes for multiple washings. Spray it only on the outside of your clothes - no part of the clothes that touch your skin. 'Q: Once I land in Delhi's airport, how do I get to the hotel and the conference venue? Any safe and economical taxi serivces out there?' In my trips to Delhi, I've always found the pre-paid taxi stand inside the airport to be much more reliable than going outside and flagging down a driver. This way you pay a set rate and confirm your destination. I suggest that you take a Taxi from the Goverment Pre paid taxi counter inside the airport so you are not cheated. They will charge approx Rs 200-250, they'll take dollars or rupees. 'Q: Are there any hotels where I may stay at which are clean and decent without getting scammed, any budget hotels?' You can consider some mid range hotels in Karol Bagh like Metro Heights. They might be very basic though but should be within the budget. Some other basic options, that are centrally located: * Hotel Alka P-Block Connaught Circus 110001 Tel: 011 23344328 (info) Tel: 011 23344000 (info) Tel: 011 23742796 (info) * Hotel Bright This is also near CP 85 M-Block 110001 Tel: 011 51517766 (info) Tel: 011 23262446 (info) Lonely Planet has some reviews of these places here & of budget hotels here. 'Q: How much would it cost from the hotel to the conference venue, for example, if I were staying at Karol Bagh, how much should i be paying for a cab without getting ripped-off?' From Karol Bagh to IHC should be Rs 50 max. From IHC back to Karol Bagh after sunset, the autos won't go for less than Rs 70-ish. But it may be a good idea to call a taxi with the help of Hotel Metro Heights. Shouldn't cost you more than Rs 200 or approximately $4. 'Q: Is it safe to drink Water that flow off the taps here just like at home? If not, how can i get safe drinking water?' If you live in a country where it's safe to drink water straight from the tap/faucet, please remember that it's not safe to do so here. Most homes either boil water, use water filtering machines or buy bottled water. In your hotel, (unless you're in a hotel which specifically says the piped-in water supply is potable), drink only from water jugs provided in your room. Elsewhere, it may make sense to buy and carry around bottled water. A 1 litre bottle would cost you around 10 to 12 rupees from a shop. That's around $0.25 USD. 'Q: I've brought my digital camera, notebook and web cam and I'd like to upload my pictures to Flickr and footage to YouTube but the Bed & Breakfast where I stay in has no internet hookup. Any ideas?' Get online for free via a WiFi access point from the various hotspots in New Delhi listed here 'Q: I’m a blogger. How can I get involved?' There are lots of ways, outlined in detail on this page for bloggers. 'Q: I’m a journalist. How can Global Voices be useful to me?' Lots of ways. Check out our special page for journalists. 'Q: I have a complaint about the way the site works, and a suggestion to fix it. What should I do?' By all means please e-mail the tech team: Boris Anthony & Jeremy Clarke 'Q: I’d like to donate funds to help Global Voices grow. How can I do that?' Thank you very much!!! We welcome your help. Please email the Managing Editors.